The effects of genomic polymorphisms in one-carbon metabolism pathways on survival of gastric cancer patients received fluorouracil-based adjuvant therapy

5-fluorouracil (5-FU) is widely used to treat patients with gastric cancer (GC). However, the response rate is quite heterogeneous. The single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) and their interactions of genes in the one-carbon metabolism (OCM) pathway, including Methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase (MTHFR), Methionine synthase reductase (MTRR), Methionine synthase (MTR), and Thymidylate synthase (TS), significantly affect 5-FU metabolism. In this study, 650 stage II-III patients were recruited from 1998 to 2006. Among them, 251 received 5-FU treatment and other 399 patients were untreated. The Cox regression analysis, log-rank tests and Kaplan–Meier plots were adopted. In the chemotherapy cohort, MTRR 66 GA + GG genotypes decreased death risk, however, the protect effect of MTRR 66 GA + GG disappeared when GC patients simultaneously had MTHFR 677TT + TC or MTR 2756GG + GA genotypes. TS 5′-UTR 2R3R + 3R3R genotypes also prolonged overall survival of patients treated with 5-FU. And this favorable prognosis obviously enhanced when GC patients simultaneously had TS 3′-UTR DD + DI and TS 5′-UTR 2R3R + 3R3R genotypes. Our findings showed that the polymorphisms of MTRR 66 A > G and TS 5′-UTR 3R > 2R may be potential prognostic factors for GC patients receiving 5-FU.